Manuka Resources Limited
Manuka Resources (ASX: MKR, also listed on the NZX) is restarting its Cobar Basin operations in New South Wales: the Wonawinta silver project and the Mt Boppy gold mine, which share Wonawinta's existing 1 Mtpa processing plant, granted mining leases and approved tailings facilities. Silver is the leading metal, about 88% of revenue in the amended January 2026 pre-feasibility study's 10-year plan. Gold processing from Mt Boppy stockpiles restarted in September 2026, and silver production is targeted for December 2026 or January 2027, once new crushing and de-slime circuits are commissioned. Manuka also owns the Taranaki VTM iron sands project in New Zealand, whose fast-track consent application was withdrawn in February 2026 after a draft decision to decline.
Notable vs. Peers
- Financials score of 1/10 is weaker than the peer average of 7.3/10.
- Jurisdiction risk score of 9/10 is meaningfully safer than the peer average of 6.8/10.
- Trading within 4% of its 52-week low — weak recent price momentum.
Lifecycle Milestones
Construction Milestones
4 of 5 reached- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- May 2025 · Source
- Apr 2026 · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Not yet reached
Milestones are recorded only from a company's own dated disclosure. A milestone with no date shown is one we can confirm was reached but for which no date was disclosed — we don't estimate one. "Not yet reached" means exactly that, not that a date is missing. An "Expected" line likewise only ever reflects the company's own guidance (e.g. a study or permit decision targeted for a stated quarter) — most not-yet-reached milestones have none, and that absence means no such guidance has been disclosed, not that one is overdue.
Not in place: grid power.
Jurisdiction (40%)9/10
New South Wales: Fraser PPI 2025 is 73.26 of 100 (rank 37 of 68), which maps to 9 on this site's scale. Cobar Basin, New South Wales, Australia -- Tier-1 mining jurisdiction.
Infrastructure (40%)7.1/10
A confirmed mill, confirmed road access, no confirmed grid power, and a confirmed tailings facility at Cobar Basin Restart (Mt Boppy & Wonawinta).
Nearby producing mine (20%)Not yet researched
No project coordinates on file yet, so distance to a producing mine can't be measured.
Acquisition Susceptibility
A relative ranking of how closely this company matches the profile of juniors that have actually been acquired — not a probability, and not a reason to buy. Acquisitions are rare: only a few dozen significant deals happen a year across a universe of thousands of juniors, so even a high score here describes a long shot. The strongest signal in the research, a producer that already owns part of the company, is scored from its disclosed strategic shareholders. A producer that is a joint-venture or earn-in partner on the project, rather than a shareholder, isn't captured yet.
How this score is built
- Disclosed pending dealSub-score: Not scored
No pending acquisition or merger disclosed (checked)
Not scored: having no deal in flight isn't held against a company.
Weight 26.25% - Producer's strategic stakeSub-score: Not scored
No producer holds a disclosed stake on file (holder register researched) See holders
Not scored: most juniors that do get bought had no prior toehold, so a missing stake says little either way.
Weight 25% - Distance to a producing mineSub-score: Not yet researched
Distance not yet researched: no project coordinates on file
Distance can't be measured without coordinates, so excluded rather than counted as far.
Weight 22.5% - Lifecycle stageSub-score:7/10
Stage: Construction
Feasibility and permitting score 10, where deals cluster, and production 5.5; earlier stages score less, down to 1 at grassroots.
Weight 15% · 57% here - JurisdictionSub-score:9/10
Australia: jurisdiction score 9/10
Our jurisdiction score, used as is: higher means lower political and permitting risk.
Weight 6.75% · 26% here - CommoditySub-score:5/10
Primary commodity: Silver
Gold 10, copper 8, silver 5, nickel and uranium 4, others 2: most majors' deals are for gold.
Weight 4.5% · 17% here
Weight is each input's share of the full score. “Here” is its share of this company's score: inputs that aren't scored are left out and the rest re-weighted, never counted as zero.
Your Rankings
Management Team
Executive Chairman of Manuka Resources Limited, the company's top executive officer (no separate CEO). Began his career in Australian financial markets in 1983 and was Head of Trading at HSBC Australia before joining Tennant Limited in 1997, where he was a principal shareholder and managing director from 2000 until December 2014. Founded ResCap Investments Pty Ltd in December 2014.
Chief Operating Officer of Manuka Resources Limited and a co-founder of the company. Founder of Rescap, bringing operational experience to the company's Cobar Basin gold and silver projects.
Insiders, Investors & Smart Money
Notable shareholders and insiders whose involvement is worth knowing about, plus what we're seeing from institutional/large-investor activity.
The company's own website repeatedly blocked automated access, and its 2026 ASX announcements (production ramp-up at Mt Boppy, Cobar Basin PFS results) contained no shareholder or insider-dealing disclosures.
No notable insiders tracked for this miner yet.
Reports, Presentations & Documents
Manuka Resources is restarting its Cobar Basin operations in New South Wales, the Wonawinta silver project and the Mt Boppy gold mine, which share Wonawinta's existing 1 Mtpa CIL plant, granted mining leases and approved tailings facilities. Silver is its leading metal: in the amended January 2026 pre-feasibility study's 10-year plan, 13.2 Moz of payable silver earns about 88% of revenue and 35,200 oz of gold the rest. Gold production restarted first, in September 2026, from stockpiled Mt Boppy ore; silver production is targeted for December 2026 or January 2027, once the new crushing and de-slime circuits are commissioned. Wonawinta's measured and indicated resources contain 19,400,000 oz of silver (1,480,000 oz measured and 17,920,000 oz indicated, at 45.7 g/t), plus 42,900,000 oz inferred, and it carries a probable reserve of 12.8 Moz of silver (7.9 Mt at 50.4 g/t); Mt Boppy's measured and indicated resources contain 42,700 oz of gold in the ground. The study, about 37% of whose production target comes from resources rather than reserves, shows a pre-tax NPV8% of US$563.7M (AUD 805.3M) and an IRR of 1,092% at US$95/oz silver and US$4,800/oz gold, with pre-production capital of US$18.6M (AUD 26.6M). Manuka also owns the Taranaki VTM iron sands project in New Zealand, which has a 2025 pre-feasibility study; its fast-track consent application was withdrawn in February 2026 after a draft decision to decline, and the company can reapply.